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Building decarbonization

Learn more about our programs to equitably reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and lower energy bills, while improving indoor air quality and climate resilience in homes and other buildings in King County and beyond.

Healthy, Electric, Climate Resilient Buildings:

Investing in the places that we live, work, gather, and play.

worker installs heat pump at a home

The buildings and indoor spaces in which we live, work, gather, and play can produce GHG emissions, or climate pollution, from space heating or appliances that are powered by fossil fuels (natural gas, oil, or propane) or wood. Electric space heating and cooling systems and appliances can also produce GHG emissions; however, in much smaller quantities (and zero if the building is fully powered by renewable energy).

Building decarbonization is the act of reducing or fully eliminating GHG emissions that result from homes and buildings. There are many actions one can take to reduce GHG emissions from homes and buildings. These actions not only reduce GHG emissions, but they can also improve indoor air quality and building occupant comfort, which improves our health and climate resilience.

Actions to reduce GHG emissions from buildings may include....

  • Improve energy efficiency and weatherization – Optimize heating/cooling systems, insulate and air-seal buildings, and install energy efficient lighting to lower energy use and reduce energy costs.
  • Install heat pumps – Replace heating systems that burn natural gas, oil, wood, or propane, with highly efficient electric heat pumps.
  • Install efficient electric appliances – Replace hot water heaters, clothes dryers, and stoves that burn natural gas with efficient, electric appliances.
  • Install renewable energy – Install onsite solar panels or pursue other means of powering the building’s heating and cooling systems and appliances with renewable energy.
  • For new buildings:
    • Use materials that require less energy to produce and transport.
    • Design buildings to be energy efficient.

Energize Program

Direct Installation Programs for Homes and Community Spaces

Do you own or lease an older house or building in need of energy-saving improvements? Does your house or building need air conditioning? Energize installs heat pumps, which provide heating and cooling, and other high efficiency electric appliances at low- to no-cost to the following building types, with a specific focus on buildings located in or serving frontline communities (people disproportionately impacted by climate change):

Installing heat pumps and other high efficiency electric appliances and improving weatherization can lower energy costs and reduce climate pollution from your house or building, while improving indoor air quality and climate resilience.

Learn more

Building Decarbonization Grant for Local Governments

*Open to local governments in King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties*

Are you a local government that owns an older building (or buildings) in need of energy-saving improvements or air conditioning? King County is administering a grant program for local governments to weatherize and install high efficiency electric heat pump heating and cooling systems in one or more of their buildings that serve as community gathering spaces or provide community services (libraries, community centers, skills training locations, school buildings, etc.). Installing heat pumps and other high efficiency electric appliances can lower energy costs and reduce GHG emissions from buildings, while improving indoor air quality and increasing climate resilience.

Eligible governments and buildings must be located in King, Kitsap, Pierce, or Snohomish Counties; buildings must serve as community gathering spaces or offer community services directly from the buildings.

Grants will cover 30-50% of project costs, with a maximum grant award of $300,000-$500,000 depending on whether buildings are located in and/or serve frontline communities.

Learn more

Market Transformation

C-PACER

Looking to find ways to finance your energy and building resiliency project? C-PACER is an alternative loan program that allows owners of eligible commercial properties to seek long-term financing from a private capital provider for qualified improvements related to energy and building resiliency.

Learn more

Additional financing options are available:

Embodied Carbon

King County is developing programs to reduce embodied carbon, or climate pollution resulting from materials extraction, manufacturing, and transportation associated with the development of building materials. These initiatives will:

  • Establish King County capital project embodied carbon requirements
  • Promote embodied carbon requirements in local and state building codes
  • Support industry participation in embodied carbon regulation, materials testing, and GHG reduction activity

Updates coming soon!

Circular Economy & Salvaged Lumber

These programs seek to capture and reuse unpainted and untreated (clean) wood in building demolition. These King County initiatives will:

  • Support deconstruction, collection, processing and distribution processes for salvaged lumber
  • Establish manufacturer processing in the Salvaged Lumber Warehouse
  • Support materials testing for industry reuse

Updates coming soon!

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